Civil war

Major Events leading to Civil War

  • Massachusetts Bay Colony Legalizes Slavery

    (Exact date is unknown)
    Beginning of slavery
  • No Way Out

    Virginia passed a law prohibiting slaves that converted to Christianity to become free.
  • The Missouri Compromise

    A solution to slavery issues in unorganized territories.
  • War of Mexico and Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

    Northerners were upset with the War of Mexico because they believed it was a way for the southerners seeking more land to spread slavery into.
  • Fugitive Slave Law

    Allowed and encouraged slave holders to find and retreive their runaway slaves if they were found in the North.
  • Kansas-Nebraska Act

    Territories could decide by popular vote if slavery should be allowed or not.
  • Lincoln-Douglas Debates

    Lincoln argued that the U.S could no longer stay divided. While Douglas argued for popular sovereignty.
  • John Brown's Raid at Harper's Ferry

    John Brown's plan to start a slave revolt failed and the South feared that the North was trying to arm slaves to fight back. The South now believed that it wasn't safe to be in the union anymore.
  • Election of 1860

    Lincoln won presidency making the South's nightmares come true.